When is the best time to observe NGC 1246?

NGC 1246 is best observed from October through December, with peak visibility during November when it transits around midnight in the Northern Hemisphere.

Where is NGC 1246 located in the sky?

NGC 1246 lies in the constellation Horologium at right ascension 03h 07m and declination -66° 56′.

What telescope do I need to see NGC 1246?

At magnitude 13.0, NGC 1246 is a challenging target that needs at least an 8-inch (200 mm) telescope and dark skies.

NGC 1246 — Galaxy in Horologium

Galaxy Fair (29/100)

Elliptical

Magnitude 13.0^m Galaxy Horologium (Hor) Visible

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1Properties

Magnitude 13.04

Angular Size 1.4′ × 0.8′

Position Angle 36°

Distance 249.64 million ly

Galaxy Type Elliptical (E)

Description

pF, S, R, glbM

Position & Identifiers

RA 03h 07m 00.0s

Dec -66° 55' 60.0"

Constellation Horologium (Hor)

Catalog NGC 1246

2How easy to spot?

Telescope	Bortle 3	Bortle 4	Bortle 5
80 mm refractor 80mm refr.	Hard	V. hard+	V. hard+
150 mm Newton 150mm Newt.	Hard+	Hard	Hard
Celestron C8 (203 mm SCT) C8 203mm	Medium	Hard+	Hard+

Easy Medium Hard Very hard Impossible

Bortle 3 = rural · 4 = outer suburbs · 5 = suburbs

Medium on Seestar S50

3Visibility

Set a location in User Settings to see visibility data.

Best season Oct – Dec (peak: Nov)

4 Eyepiece View

Telescope Eyepiece

125x TFOV: 0.4° Lim. mag: 13.6

Seeing Bortle

NGC 1246 · 1.4′×0.8′ · N up, E left

5 Best Magnification

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6 Surface Brightness

7 Morphology Decoder

8 Inclination & True Shape

9 Redshift

10 Size Comparator

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Relativistic Travel

Nearby in the Sky

Other targets within a few degrees — pan your scope a little and keep exploring.

Visibility scores assume a 150 mm Newton at Bortle 4.

NGC 1313

Easy

Barred spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 9.0 1.2° Reticulum

Zeta Ret

HIP 15371; Zeta2 Reticuli

Easy

Easy double, sep 309.1″

Double Star mag 5.24 4.6° Reticulum

NGC 1490

Hard+

Elliptical galaxy

Galaxy mag 12.79 4.7° Reticulum

NGC 1511

Hard+

Bright spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 12.0 5.1° Hydrus

NGC 1466

Medium

Compact globular cluster

Globular Cluster mag 11.4 5.8° Hydrus

NGC 1534

Hard

Bright spiral galaxy

Galaxy mag 12.92 7.7° Reticulum

NGC 1695

Hard+

Open cluster

Open Cluster mag 12.16 9.6° Dorado

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